The Banned Weapons Quiz

Human beings devise all manner of ways in which to hurt one another, but sometimes we agree that some of those concepts are just too terrible to use in the real world. How much do you know about banned weapons?

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Question 1 of 30

What weapon is illegal in war but may be for sale at your local convenience store?

handgun

pepper spray

That's right, you can carry it on your keychain but not into battle.

Twinkies

Question 2 of 30

What weapon was banned by the Saint Petersburg Declaration of 1868?

chewed musket balls

exploding musket balls

There was fear that these projectiles might maim or cripple soldiers and cause even more suffering before death.

poisoned bullets

Question 3 of 30

What weapon is illegal in war but legal for domestic riot control?

Long Range Acoustic Device

tear gas

Tear gases are nerve agents that target pain-detecting nerves in the human body.

rubber bullets

Question 4 of 30

What agreement banned biological and chemical weapons in international conflicts?

Arusha Agreement

Geneva Protocol

Of course, the Geneva Protocol hasn't always proved to be totally effective.

Nassau Agreement

Question 5 of 30

When was the Geneva Protocol signed?

1925

The horrors of chemical weapons in WWI helped to spur action.

1946

1962

Question 6 of 30

Which gas caused the most deaths in WWI?

No one knows.

phosphene gas

It causes lung tissue to break down, making it hard for humans to breathe.

mustard gas

Question 7 of 30

Mustard gas was first used during which conflict?

American Civil War

WWI

The Germans first used it against Canadian and British soldiers; eventually the Allies used it, too.

WWII

Question 8 of 30

How long does it take people to exhibit symptoms of mustard gas poisoning?

2 to 3 hours

12 to 24 hours

In the meantime, anyone who is exposed can spread the poison to other people.

It happens immediately

Question 9 of 30

The United States Federal Assault Weapons Ban was signed in which year?

1994

The 10-year ban signed by President Clinton was designed to reduce domestic gun violence.

1988

1981

Question 10 of 30

After the Federal Assault Weapons Ban expired, what did a task force conclude regarding the ban's effectiveness?

Results were inconclusive.

There didn't seem to be any clear evidence showing that the ban was truly effective.

The ban worked.

The ban didn't work.

Question 11 of 30

What weapon does the Ottawa Treaty ban?

landmines

The U.S. did not sign the treaty, which became law in 1999.

hand grenades

napalm

Question 12 of 30

VX is what type of weapon?

nerve agent

It is odorless and has the viscosity of motor oil, making it dangerous and messy.

biological agent

Atomic bomb

Question 13 of 30

At what dosage does VX become lethal to humans?

10 mg

Inhalation exposure can cause symptoms to appear immediately.

100 mg

1 g

Question 14 of 30

Which agreement proposed a ban on all chemical weapons … but was never ratified?

Australia Group

Treaty of Versailles

Washington Arms Conference

The 1922 conference came just a few years after the chemical terrors of WWI.

Question 15 of 30

Spike pits are banned by which agreement?

Munich Agreement

Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons

The pits use sharpened vertical spikes in a hole; victims fall and are gouged or impaled, causing inhumane suffering.

Geneva Protocol

Question 16 of 30

Customary international law basically outlaws which weapons?

blinding lasers

nuclear weapons

weapons of indiscriminate nature

Indiscriminate weapons (like landmines) hurt everyone, including people who have no part of the fighting.

Question 17 of 30

Protocol IV of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons bans which class of weapons?

incendiary weapons

nlinding laser weapons

Specifically, it bans weapons that cause permanent blindness, not those of a temporary nature.

explosive remnants of war

Question 18 of 30

In what year was the Chemical Weapons Convention held?

1925

1971

1993

Thanks in part to this agreement, most of the world's chemical weapons have been destroyed.

Question 19 of 30

The Hague Convention of 1899 outlawed projectiles whose sole objective is to do what?

explode on contact

spread suffocating gases

The idea of suffocating people didn't seem to appeal to anyone; only one major country (U.S.) didn't sign the agreement.

kill people

Question 20 of 30

According to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, flamethrowers are banned from which scenarios?

Any situation that could result in the asphyxiation of soldiers

Any circumstance that could trap the intended targets

Any situation that may involve civilians

So on a normal battlefield, you can go right ahead with your flame throwing fun.

Question 21 of 30

How many countries signed the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention?

78

163

The agreement essentially banned all biological weapons.

212

Question 22 of 30

Thanks to Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, armies can only use napalm on forests in which circumstances?

If the enemy is hiding there.

Unless there is a military objective in the woods, you can't just randomly drop incendiary weapons.

If there only a few civilians in proximity.

If there are WMDs in the area.

Question 23 of 30

Which war seemed to show that arms agreements could stop the use of chemical weapons during combat?

WWI

WWII

Compared to WWI, chemical weapons weren't used much; this, of course, doesn't take into account chemicals used in the concentration camps that murdered millions of people.

Korean War

Question 24 of 30

Why did the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons ban weapons with non-detectable fragments?

Non-detectable materials tend to be toxic.

Doctors can't remove fragments they can't find.

Weapons like plastic landmines can leave fragments that doctors can't find and remove, causing the victim even more suffering.

Non-detectable materials tend to shatter bones.

Question 25 of 30

Which banned weapon did Saddam Hussein use to kill thousands of people in Halabja in 1988?

small nuclear warhead

anthrax

poison gas

In addition to the immediate deaths, civilians suffered birth defects and lingering injuries for years.

Question 26 of 30

Why did the Hague Convention of 1899 outlaw hollow- or soft-tipped bullets?

The bullets expand when they hit humans.

The expanding bullets "bloom" when they strike flesh, causing all sorts of damage.

They can be packed with poisons.

They cause fractures that don't heal.

Question 27 of 30

What other weapon did the Hague Convention outlaw, but only for half a decade?

balloon-launched projectiles

This was just before the beginning of modern flight, which would revolutionize war.

landmines

repeating rifles

Question 28 of 30

Why are non-self-destructing landmines banned?

They tend to use more powerful charges.

They hurt more civilians than soldiers.

If landmines are timed to destroy themselves, the hope is that they won't hurt innocent civilians after the conflict ends.

They use non-detectable fragments.

Question 29 of 30

The Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons failed to totally ban which devastating weapon?

incendiary grenades

nuclear bombs

landmines

It was only a partial ban, so activists pursued the Ottawa Treaty, which was signed later.